Established September 2006

API & Equity

The first formal education system was developed during 300 BC by Sumerians and Egyptians to serve as centers for teaching reading and writing. Later on, Confucius added music, literature and ethics to the learning list, and turned schools into enrichment centers. By the time we went to school, they served dual purpose of educating us, and setting the stage for our career choices. However, in the past decade education has evolved into a “race to the top” purely based on numbers. API ranking, API Growth Scores, Test Scores, SAT Scores, GPA – all these numbers have become vital in deciding a student’s future, and in controlling the real estate prices.

Whether we like it or not, for a large population that resides in Irvine, school district was the decisive factor. But even in the best school district, are some schools better than others? Does that affect the price for the particular neighborhood? Before we tell our children that our equity rests in their hands and ask them to bolster their test scores, let’s have a look at the Median Price/SF in the Irvine Villages and the percentage of price change in the last year (disregarding the age of the village, the ethnicity of the residents, the proximity to the freeway and other factors)

Village

School

Median Price/SF

Y-O-Y % change

Northwood

(Perfect 10)

Northwood Elementary School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 937

Santiago Hills Elementary

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 961

Brywood Elementary School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 926

Sierra Vista Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 948

$292/SF

-7.6%

Northwood Point

(Perfect 10)

Canyon View Elementary

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 966

Sierra Vista Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 948

Northwood High School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 908

$328/SF

-7.1%

Lower Peter’s Canyon

(Biggest Y-o-Y percentage drop)

Hicks Canyon Elementary

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 942

Myford Elementary

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 951

Pioneer Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 939

Orchard Hills Middle School

API Rank: Not ranked yet

API Growth: 952

Arnold Beckman Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 866

$275/SF

-21.9%

Portola Springs

(Perfect 10)

Stonegate Elementary Schoo

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 954

Sierra Vista Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 948

Northwood High School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 908

$293/ SF

1.4%

Woodbury

Woodbury Elementary School

API Rank: 9

API Growth: 918

Sierra Vista Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 948

Irvine High School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 881

$292

-16.8%

Woodbridge

Springbrook Elementary

API Rank: 9

API Growth: 897

Meadow Park Elementary

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 947

Stonecreek Elementary School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 958

Eastshore Elementary School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 940

Lakeside Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 933

Southlake Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 916

Woodbridge High School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 877

$273

-6.2%

Oak Creek

(Perfect 10)

Oak Creek Elementary

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 925

Lakeside Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 933

Woodbridge high School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 877

$261/SF

-20.4%

Quail Hill

(Perfect 10)

Alderwood Elementary School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 961

Rancho San Joaquin Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 954

University High School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 908

$326/SF

-13.3%

Turtle Rock

(Perfect 10)

Turtle Rock Elementary School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 978

Bonita Canyon Elementary School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 965

Rancho San Joaquin Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 954

University High School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 908

$295/SF

-14.2%

West Park

(Highest Price/SF)

Culverdale Elementary School

API Rank: 8

API Growth: 857

Southlake Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 916

University High School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 908

$356

-11.2%

West Park II

(Perfect 10)

Stone Creek Elementary School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 958

Plaza Vista Elementary School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 958

Lakeside Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 933

Woodbridge High School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 877

$305

-14.8%

University Park

University Park Elementary

API Rank: 9

API Growth: 909

Rancho San Joaquin Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 954

University High School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 908

$281

-10.8%

Walnut Village

(Perfect 10)

(Lowest Price/SF)

Deerfield Elementary School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 937

College Park Elementary School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 927

Venado Middle School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 927

Irvine High School

API Rank: 10

API Growth: 881

$259

-12.8%

Observations:

Walnut village has the lowest price/ sf in the Irvine villages listed about, and has three schools with a perfect 10 API Score. The API Growth Score is good too, but still it ended up at the bottom of the list.

West Park has the highest price/sf in the list, but the elementary school has API rank of 8, and the API Growth Score is not above the desirable 900.

The year-over-year percentage drop was the biggest in Lowers Peters Canyon (West Irvine and North park, North park Square) area, and it has Tustin Unified School District schools with a perfect 10 API, and high API Growth Scores.

Portola Springs saw a percentage hike over last year’s median price/sf, and the schools have a perfect ten API rank and good API growth score. But many other villages are on par with those numbers.

Even though the boundaries of the City of Irvine command better prices in Orange County because of their schools, school boundaries within Irvine aren’t dictating the prices yet.

Would you choose one Irvine village over another based only on the schools? Do you think it is the schools that help Irvine hold the premium over other cities?